Optical multiplexing has a large impact in photonics, the life sciences and biomedicine. However, current technology is limited by a 'multiplexing ceiling' from existing optical materials. Here we engineered a class of polyyne-based materials for optical supermultiplexing. We achieved 20 distinct Raman frequencies, as 'Carbon rainbow', through rational engineering of conjugation length, bond-selective isotope doping and end-capping substitution of polyynes. With further probe functionalization, we demonstrated ten-color organelle imaging in individual living cells with high specificity, sensitivity and photostability. Moreover, we realized optical data storage and identification by combinatorial barcoding, yielding to our knowledge the largest number of distinct spectral barcodes to date. Therefore, these polyynes hold great promise in live-cell imaging and sorting as well as in high-throughput diagnostics and screening.

光学多路复用对光子学，生命科学和生物医学具有重大影响。然而，当前技术受到现有光学材料的“多重天花板”的限制。在这里，我们设计了一类基于聚炔的材料用于光学超级多路复用。通过合理设计共轭长度，键选择同位素掺杂和聚炔的封端取代，我们获得了20个不同的拉曼频率，称为“碳彩虹”。通过进一步的探针功能化，我们展示了具有高特异性，敏感性和光稳定性的单个活细胞中的十色细胞器成像。此外，我们通过组合条形码实现了光学数据的存储和识别，据我们所知，迄今为止，获得了最多数量的独特光谱条形码。所以，